Colluthus of Lycopolis (Κόλουθος ὁ Λυκοπολίτης) was a Greek epic poet from Lycopolis in Egypt, active during the late 5th or early 6th century CE, under the reign of Emperor Anastasius I [1][2]. The Suda provides the sole biographical notice, confirming his origin and era but offering no further details on his life or education [1][2].

His only surviving work is the Abduction of Helen (Ἁρπαγὴ Ἑλένης), a short epic poem of 392 hexameters on the Judgement of Paris and Helen’s kidnapping [1][2][3]. The Suda also credits him with lost works—the Calydoniaca, Persica, and Encomia—but no fragments remain [1][2].

Colluthus exemplifies late antique Greek epic poetry, producing learned, Homeric-style narratives on mythological themes [1]. The Abduction of Helen survives in a 13th-century manuscript alongside other epic cycle poems, offering a minor but typical product of the literary culture in the late Roman Egyptian chora, where Homeric imitation retained pedagogical and aesthetic value [1].

Sources 1. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics: https://oxfordre.com/classics/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-1722 2. Perseus Digital Library, Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0104%3Aentry%3Dcolluthus-bio-1 3. ToposText: https://topostext.org/work/741